Rumors are circulating that HTC has scrapped a project that would produce a 5” or larger smartphone using the new Windows Phone 8 operating system. Apparently, HTC couldn’t justify going with the larger screen due to Microsoft’s strict screen resolution requirements.

While there are Android smartphones in that pipeline that support resolutions as high as 1080p, Microsoft has limited Windows Phone 8 to a maximum of 720p (for now).

Bloomberg reports that HTC's decision will deliver a blow to Microsoft and its efforts to compete with Android in the smartphone market. Consumers wanting a large-screen smartphone will have no choice but to go with Android offerings if they are shopping from HTC.

Specifically, I was looking at a DNA next to an S3, and I could see a difference. No magnification needed. Definitely cannot see the pixels on the DNA, but depending on what I'm looking at they are sometimes clearly visible on the S3. It's not bad enough to actually bother me.

Also: 8X = 342dpi Super LCD vs. S3 = 306dpi PenTile. So, I would expect the difference between the 8X and the DNA to be less noticeable.

Of course pixel density is just one factor in how good a display is. What's funny though is that the article says 720p is the limit, but you can get a Lumia 920 with a slightly-higher 768 x 1280 resolution. I think the Ativ Odyssey will use the same resolution. I'm thinking that's the real limit, until they introduce an update and a new Chassis spec.